Abortion law passed by Texas legislature ruled unconstitutional

A federal judge has ruled that new abortion
restrictions passed by the Texas Legislature are unconstitutional and will not
take effect as scheduled today.

District Judge Lee Yeakel wrote Monday that
the regulations violated the rights of abortion doctors to do what they think
is best for their patients and would unreasonably restrict a woman’s access to
abortion clinics.

Planned Parenthood and other plaintiffs in the
lawsuit argued that requiring doctors to have admitting privileges at a nearby
hospital would force the closure of one-third of the Texas clinics. During the
trial, officials for one chain of abortion clinics testified that they’ve tried
to obtain admitting privileges for their doctors at 32 hospitals, but so far
only 15 accepted applications and none have announced a decision. Many
hospitals with religious affiliations will not allow abortion doctors to work
there, while others fear protests if they provide privileges. Many have
requirements that doctors live within a certain radius of the facility, or
perform a minimum number of surgeries a year that must be performed in a
hospital.

Danielle Wells, spokeswoman for Planned Parenthood
of Greater Texas, said that its clinics would have still remained open to
provide many other basic health services — including the clinic in Denton that
provides basic health care, birth control and cancer screenings — had there
been no ruling today.

“But there would have been terrible consequences,”
Wells said, including the closure of the parts of its clinics that provided
abortions. “There would have not been one provider in Fort Worth. No one west
of Interstate 35 would be able to provide an abortion.”

Denton County Republican Party Chair Dianne
Edmondson said she was disappointed in the ruling. A longtime advocate for
restricting abortion access, she served for many years as the executive
director for the Republican National Coalition for Life.

“This is an overwhelmingly sad decision,” Edmondson
said.

She took issue with the argument that doctors were
being restricted in their ability to provide care as they saw fit. The Texas
law included exceptions for the life and health of the mother, and requiring
that doctors who provide abortions also have admitting privileges at nearby
hospitals was part of ensuring women had access to quality care if something
goes wrong.

“I’m shocked that it would be found
unconstitutional,” Edmondson said.

Immediately following the decision, Texas Attorney
General Greg Abbott filed an emergency appeal of the order to the 5th Circuit
Court of Appeals in New Orleans and added that he has “no doubt that this case
is going all the way to the United States Supreme Court.”

Mississippi passed a similar law last year, which a
federal judge also blocked pending a trial scheduled to begin in March.
Mississippi’s attorney general asked the 5th Circuit to lift the temporary
injunction so the law could be enforced, but the judges have left it in place
signaling they believe there is a legitimate constitutional question.

Unlike the Mississippi case, the judge’s order is a
final decision for Texas, setting the groundwork for the 5th Circuit to review
the merits of the law, not just an injunction against it.

The proposed restrictions gained notoriety when
state Sen. Wendy Davis, D-Fort Worth, launched a nearly 13-hour filibuster
against them in June. The filibuster forced Gov. Rick Perry to call a second
special legislative session to pass the law.

In a statement, Davis said she wasn’t surprised by
the judge’s ruling.

“Texas families are stronger and healthier when
women across the state have access to quality healthcare,” Davis said. “As a
mother, I would rather see our tax dollars spent on improving our kid’s schools
than defending this law.”

In a statement, state Sen. Craig Estes, R-Wichita
Falls, said he was saddened by the decision.

“It is disturbing to know that the abortion
industry is celebrating a so-called victory that actually reduces the standard
of care for the women from whom they profit,” Estes said.

The law also bans abortions at 20 weeks of
pregnancy and beginning in October 2014 requires doctors to perform all
abortions in surgical facilities.

The Associated Press contributed to this
story.

PEGGY HEINKEL-WOLFE can be reached at 940-566-6881
and via Twitter at @phwolfeDRC.

Comments

DentonRC.com is now using Facebook Comments. To post a comment, log into Facebook and then add your comment below. Your comment is subject to Facebook's Privacy Policy and Terms of Service on data use. If you don't want your comment to appear on Facebook, uncheck the 'Post to Facebook' box. To find out more, read the FAQ .